F1 team announce NEW driver contract in official statement

Williams Formula 1 team has announced a new driver contract in an official statement.

The Grove-based outfit will welcome Carlos Sainz alongside Alex Albon for 2025, after the Spaniard was displaced at Ferrari as the team instead signed Lewis Hamilton.

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Sainz will replace current driver Franco Colapinto, who made his F1 debut after it was announced the Ferrari star would be moving to Williams.

However, the Argentine remains without a drive for 2025, despite impressing current boss James Vowles and rival team principals with his performances.

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Williams star announces new contract

Colapinto has proved to be a match for Albon since he replaced Logan Sargeant at the team, with his performances instilling confidence in the strength of Williams’ driver academy.

In an official statement from the team, they revealed that one of their academy drivers, Oleksandr ‘Sasha’ Bondarev, will make his full-time debut in the Italian Formula 4 Championship with PREMA for 2025, signing a new contract.

The Ukrainian star graduated from karting to single seaters for the final two rounds of the 2024 championship, where he enjoyed points finishes, including one in the top five.

Bondarev joined the Williams family in 2023, and went on to win the WSK Champions Cup this year, which has also boasted fellow Williams F1 star Sargeant as a champion.

"It’s exciting to see Sasha take the next step in his motorsport career by competing in the 2025 Italian F4 season with PREMA," Williams sporting director Sven Smeets said in an official statement.

"Since joining the Williams Racing driver academy, he has gone from strength to strength on track and has shown impressive development in his transition from karting to single-seater racing.

"We will be following his season closely next year and hope to see him continue his positive trajectory."

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Written by

Sheona Mountford - F1 Journalist

Sheona Mountford is a motorsport journalist specialising in F1. As a writer and contributor, she covers a wide range of motorsport series from F1 to F1 Academy, responsible for breaking news, live race coverage and in depth analysis of the sport and the culture around it.

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